Job Title:                            Project Officer – UDAAN (Internal)

Location:                            Kathmandu, Nepal

Division:                             Programs

Post Date: 4/20/2026                                                                               Apply Before: 4/26/2026

Heifer Project Nepal is an equal-opportunity employer.  All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, status as a protected veteran, among other things, or status as a qualified individual with some form of specially abled.

FUNCTION:

The Project Officer for the UDAAN (Unleashing Digital Acceleration and Ambition of Nepali Youth) project primarily supports strengthening policy and governance structures to promote innovation and enterprise development at the municipal level, with a focus on institutionalizing digital innovation systems. The Officer contributes to the project’s policy, innovation, and employment ecosystem components through municipal-level engagement. The officer will support the Innovation and New Initiative Lead to ensure translation of the learnings from this project to other strategic interventions of Heifer and vice versa.

The Project Officer is responsible for planning, implementation, coordination, and monitoring of assigned project components, including partnership management, reporting, and capacity building of field teams and partners in line with project goals and MEL requirements. This position requires extensive field travel to ensure the quality of project activities and to verify the accuracy of reported data/figures and processes.

RESPONSIBILITIES AND DELIVERABLES: (including approximate percentage effort)

 Project Implementation (70%):

• Lead the implementation of the Innovation Fellowship and Innovation Hub component of the UDAAN project

• Establish and maintain strategic partnerships with selected municipalities to implement innovation hubs and digital governance initiatives
• Recruit fellows through a competitive process and support their effective placement at municipalities
• Organize capacity development training for the fellows
• Facilitate the organization of community-based events by the fellows for policy dialogues and civic engagement
• Support the fellows in institutionalizing the online courses and digital platform developed through this project
• Facilitate the development and adoption of Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for operationalizing innovation hubs at the municipal level

• Provide coordination and field-level support to consortium partners in organizing entrepreneurship bootcamps and hackathons.

• Collaborate with consortium partners to contextualize and support the rollout of digital learning content (AI, coding, animation, entrepreneurship) at the local level

• Identify and engage public and private sector partners, academic institutions, and technology stakeholders to strengthen local innovation ecosystems and project outcomes

• Track physical and financial project progress to ensure timely delivery of project outputs and compliance with EU reporting requirements

• Manage project data, records, and documentation

  Knowledge Management, Monitoring, Reporting, Documentation, and Scale Up (25%)  

• Work closely with the MEL team to track project indicators, ensure data quality, contribute to output and outcome reporting, and support annual monitoring and evaluation processes.
• Ensure accuracy, completeness, and timely submission of project data in compliance with donor requirements.
• Coordinate with the finance team for reporting and budget planning.
• Coordinate with communications and knowledge management team to prepare project communication and knowledge material and to disseminate them internally and externally.
• Support documentation, knowledge dissemination, and scaling of successful models and learnings across Heifer’s program areas and partner networks

May perform other job-related duties as assigned by the supervisor (5%) 

QUALIFICATIONS AND SKILLS:

• Bachelor’s degree in agriculture, economics, Development Studies, Business Administration, Economics or any other social science-related field is required, plus a minimum of 3 years of relevant experience. Master’s degree preferred.
• Previous experience on projects of digital innovation and entrepreneurship in rural Nepal is highly desirable.
• Knowledge and understanding of project/program design and implementation.
• Knowledge and understanding of project monitoring and evaluation
• Experience working with donor-funded projects (EU-funded projects preferred)
• Experience working with local governments and community-level stakeholders

 Most Critical Proficiencies: 

• Strong analytical skills and stakeholder coordination capability
• Effective operation of digital data management tools
• Professional command over report writing in English and Nepali
• Excellent interpersonal skills
• Time management and ability to prioritize multiple tasks
• Self motivated person able to work without close supervision
• Strong digital skills, including familiarity with digital platforms, data tools, and emerging technologies (e.g., AI), with the ability to apply them in development contexts

 ESSENTIAL COMPETENCIES: 

• Ability to prepare and present documents in a well-designed and attractive format with superior attention to detail
• Strong ability to coordinate with diverse stakeholders, including government, private sector, academia, and civil society

• Good team player with the ability to train and work cooperatively with a diverse staff, including field staff in several locations

• Ability to work with sensitive information and maintain confidentiality

• Ability to perform multiple tasks with minimal supervision

• Willingness to work with a flexible schedule

• Willingness to travel extensively to rural areas

• Able to effectively promote Heifer’s mission values and objectives

• Sensitivity in working with multiple cultures and beliefs, and to gender equity